fine grit hammer filing

Erwinspiano@aol.com Erwinspiano@aol.com
Fri, 12 Nov 2004 10:39:46 EST


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In a message dated 11/12/2004 4:12:29 AM Pacific Standard Time,  
davner@kaosol.net writes:

Hi Dave
 Since so much of the sound we recognize as the piano  sound comes from the 
condition of very top of the hammer it is therefore  critical that it be clean 
& smooth & as free from small fibers as  possible. Don was referring to using 
a new sample Ronsens in a voicing  demo.
  However when using new sets My SOP is to file new sets  starting with an 
actual reshaping of the bass using 80,120, 220, 320 ,  400& sometimes 600. The 
finer papers are really polishers but it is the last  step in a procedure that 
creates very "clean" sound from a new set of  Hammers.
  Dale Erwin




> . . . . . They still needed a little more, so I filed  them with 1,000 grit
> sandpaper . . . . . <

Isn't 1000 grit about as abrasive as, say, newsprint?  I'll admit  that
most of the hammers I've filed are on old pianos whose hammers have  never
been filed since they were built, and the string cuts are an eighth  of an
inch deep or more.  Sometimes I'll re-file a job someone else  botched.  I
seldom have a chance to do voicing on really nice  grands.  But even there,
I've never used finer than 120 grit.   Using finer seems like going past the
point of diminishing returns.   Does going up past 320 or so really make that
much difference?
I would think that under a microscope, the surface of piano  hammers
would look something like an overgrown back yard or maybe an Afro  hairdo.
Sanding something this fuzzy and fibrous with 1000 grit seems to me  like
"brushing" your cat with paper to smooth out its fur.
What's the finest grit you ever use, and why?
--David  Nereson, RPT




Erwins Pianos  Restorations 
4721 Parker Rd.
Modesto, Ca 95357
209-577-8397
Rebuilt  Steinway , Mason &Hamlin  Sales
www.Erwinspiano.com

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